Dragon Tales E-News
September 9, 2020
www.st-margarets.org
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This is it – the beginning week of school for so many of our youth! Welcome…back?
We all know how different things this year will be. The whole year, just one semester, who knows? Youth Group is no exception to the changes we are experiencing. The current Holy Hotmail youth newsletter is out, and it lays out the plans we have for the fall semester. So I won’t go into detail here, although a short summary is not out of place.
Youth Group will meet virtually via Zoom. In order to accommodate this format, there will be THREE Youth Group meetings a week via Zoom, none to last more than one hour. The first will be for the entire Group and we will meet at our old time of 7:00 p.m. Monday evenings. (This Monday, the 14th, is especially for all those joining our group for the first time.) The other two meetings will break out by grade – Middle School on Wednesday evenings starting Sept. 16, and High School on Thursdays starting on Sept. 17, both at 7:00 p.m. This allows me to work on lessons in smaller, more easily managed groups, and to tailor the content more to age. I resist this division when we meet in-person because I find the younger members benefit from the interaction with the older students, and it provided the older students with informal leadership opportunities. Zoom makes that more of a challenge, but the idea is that one or two of the high school students will join in with the Middle School group when they meet. Coupled with the entire group getting together on Monday nights, I hope this provides a reasonable facsimile of our previous format.
If you have a child that wishes to participate in these youth meetings, please email me at [email protected] so we can make sure they are added to my list of contacts.
Okay, but what about things like Night Watch, and lock-ins, and service trips? Short answer: I don’t know yet. I am going to be paying very close attention to try and identify when it is safe and essential that we gather in-person. As the situation permits and opportunities present themselves, we will look closely at what is possible. Nothing can truly substitute for in-person gatherings, but nothing is more important to me than the safety and health of our students.
One of the best and most important things about our Youth Group is the community it has created. This has been critical to the program’s success, and we all want to continue to foster that. In some ways it will require a bit more dedication on the part of the youth and parents. I have always tried to keep Youth Group from feeling like a class; meeting virtually presents significant challenges since we will necessarily use the same platform schools use, and that can get old. I can guarantee that while the format might be the same, the content, the conduct, and the feeling will be as close to “traditional” Youth Group as we can make it. It might require a bit of faith at this point, although we learned a tremendous amount from our intense Zoom schedule last spring - 90 straight days
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We are pleased to report that we will be regathering in physical worship THIS Sunday, Sept. 13!
We will be live-streaming the 9:00 a.m. service on our Facebook public page.
We will also be posting a pre-recorded service at 7:00 p.m. on Sundays on the Facebook public page.
Here are steps you can expect when you return:
1. When you arrive, the ushers will greet you with blessed hand sanitizer.
2. You will be asked to sign in, agreeing to abide by the covenant for regathering and at the same time, provide information for any contact tracing that might need to be done.
3. Please be aware of the spacing that we've done in the sanctuary. Pews are marked, so please keep your 6-ft distance from others.
4. Everyone in the church will be masked, except those who are speaking or leading music at a particular time (celebrant, cantor, lector). We have been careful to exceed 20 feet of distance from anyone speaking to the congregation.
5. When you line up for communion, please maintain six feet in back of the person in front of you.
6. While you enter through the narthex, please exit through the south transcept.
7. Please be courteous of those who might need to leave early and not have time to catch up in the parking lot after the service.(No coffee hour for the time being.)
NOTE: Please do NOT call the office to save a seat for you. You can email [email protected] if you wish to be added to the list. As of today, the list is FULL for the 9:00 and 11:15 a.m. services but there are a few slots left for the 7:30 a.m.
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Preparing Children for Regathering at Church
Hannah Graham, chair of the Diocesan Christian Formation Council, has created a four-part video series to help children understand how things will be different when we regather in our worship spaces. The series includes short episodes on wearing masks, social (physical) distancing, toys and snacks in church, and communion and singing. They are designed to help young children be leaders in their congregations by knowing what to do and doing it to keep their communities safe. See it here: https://marylandepiscopalian.org/2020/07/20/regathering-forworship-for-kids-a-video-series-for-children/
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It's Sunday School Registration Time!
As we begin to prepare for our formation classes, we need the help of our parents to register their children.
We ask for parents to check their Realm account (and their kids') to sign up for participation in the correct formation classes for the 20-21 school year.
NOTE to PARENTS: Please make sure your Realm account email addresses are correct and that you have things set so you can see teacher notifications. This is the way we will send out all Sunday School information this year and if you aren’t using Realm, you just won’t see those communications. We’ve sent out messages to parents of children in every class, so if you haven’t seen any messages about Sunday School, please email Gwen Davis at [email protected] so we can figure out why not.
Teachers have decided to use both weekly online and occasional onsite meetings throughout the year. When you sign up, you will receive more information about the teachers' plans.
First session is THIS SUNDAY.
If you are new to St. Margaret's, email [email protected] so we can get you connected with the right teachers.
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Monday Night Study
We will continue our adult study on Monday evenings this fall through Zoom, starting Sept. 14. We are excited to announce we will be studying Diana Butler Bass' popular book titled Grateful.
"With honest stories and heartrending examples from history and her own life, Bass reclaims gratitude as a path to greater connection with God, with others, with the world, and even with our own souls. It’s time to embrace a more radical practice of gratitude—the virtue that heals us and helps us thrive."
The Rev. Patti Sachs will be leading the study. If you would like to participate, simply email her at [email protected] and let her know so you will get the link to participate.
You can order a copy HERE or on Amazon.com.
Thursday Morning Bible Study
Our Thursday morning book study group continues its work through “Vintage Saints and Sinners” by Karen Wright Marsh with Zoom meetings. All are welcome to join at 9:00 a.m. each Thursday! Email the Rev. Patti Sachs at
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Grants Application for 2021
Our Endowment Grants program is now accepting applications for the 2021 year. Past grant awards are generally in the area of $5,000-15,000.
Please pass this information on to worthy nonprofits.
West Annapolis Pantry Needs
The pantry is in need of breakfast cereal, snacks/bars/treats for the kiddos, pasta, pasta sauce, Mac n Cheese, Sazón seasoning packets or bouillon, toothbrushes, toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, feminine pads, razors, deodorant, counter spray, laundry pods, dishwasher pods and sponges. Anything you can do to help us is much appreciated. Donations can be dropped at the pantry (Annapolis Evangelical Presbyterian Church - 710 Ridgely Rd in Annapolis) after 4:00 p.m.
Citizenship Instructors Wanted
Under the auspices of the Missions Commission, volunteers from St. Margaret’s teach applicants to prepare them for the Civics Test portion of their citizenship interview. Offered through the Center for Help in Annapolis, the classes cover everything from the 18-page Application for Citizenship (USCIS N-400) form to U.S. geography, government, history and holidays. With students from Mexico to Pakistan to China our volunteers present 13 units to students covering the 100 potential questions which may well be asked. If you are interested in joining our teaching team, please contact Robert Thomas at [email protected] or 757-408-1225 to be blessed by meeting and helping a group of wonderful potential new U.S. citizens.
Sewing Missions Needs Volunteers and Funds
The Sewing Mission has produced 900+ masks & 50+ isolation gowns thanks to your generous donations. Please continue to help us provide PPE for AAMC & clients of West Annapolis Pop up Pantry. All products we donated include a SMC label that declares "All are welcome" with hope that we grow the church & spread the good news of Christ. Contact Beth Kopack at [email protected] for more information.
UTO Boxes to be Collected
Remember the blue United Thanks Offering (UTO) boxes the Women's Guild distributed for members to place change in to thank God for daily blessings? When you return to the campus, please bring your box and place in the large blue bag in the narthex.
Golf Tournament for the Light House
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For more information on playing for St. Margaret's, contact Mike Winn at [email protected].
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Stewardship campaign 2020 is coming soon! |
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Give to St. Margaret's
By texting GiveSMC to 73256
By giving online
By mailing checks to:
St. Margaret's Church, 1601 Pleasant Plains Road
Annapolis, MD 21409
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Please note that the Flu Clinic on Oct. 11 has been cancelled. |
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Sunday, September 13
7:30 - Kathy Polk, Lector
9:00 - Charlie Lang, Lector
11:15 - Janis Brewer, Lector
Cantor - Alice Conover
Flower Guild - Ann Lallande
Altar Guild - Nancy Saroch, Stephanie Ceruolo, Lisa Moylan, Lynn Goff
Pre-Recorded Service
Readers - Laurie & Ella Tomko
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Sunday, September 20
7:30 - Fran Becker, Lector
9:00 - Pam Roth
11:15 - Robert Thomas
Cantor - Trish Schilling
Flower Guild - Kathy Lang
Altar Guild - Charlie Lang, Teresa Todd, Robert Thomas, Susie Byrom
Pre-Recorded Service
Reader - Jeff Conover
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If you plan to stop by the office, please call in advance (410-974-0200) to see if a staff member is available on campus. Email is the best way to communicate with staff members.
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